Mexican Rice with Cilantro dressing

Mexican Rice with Cilantro Dressing is inspired by everyone’s favorite Cilantro Lime Rice at Cafe Rio, a popular fast casual restaurant with roots in Utah! I crave Cafe Rio on the daily. Luckily I don’t have to go to the restaurant every day because I can make my favorite dishes in my own home (although I still go to the restaurant pretty often)! You’ll love this easy homemade version of this side dish. It will quickly become a staple side dish on all of your Mexican flavored recipes.

I still remember my high school Spanish teacher, Señor Turner. I don’t recall learning a lot of Spanish, but I do remember some of his mannerisms. He spent a lot of time talking about his travels abroad, and told us to spend our money on travel, instead of cars and clothing while we were young. Good advice. Where was I going with this? Maybe I was wishing I was in Mexico! This cilantro lime rice is transporting me to a tropical resort vacation in Mexico…anyone want to come with me?

This side dish is easy to cook on the stove top or make in your rice cooker or Instant Pot. Whisk together the fresh cilantro dressing in a few minutes, pour over and toss the rice. How easy is that? I use about 1/2 of the dressing over the suggested amount of rice and then keep the rest for dressing chicken before or after grilling, or for making another pot of rice! This delicious dressing is yummy on so many things. When you take the first bite of this rice you’ll have to make sure you aren’t sitting in a Cafe Rio restaurant- it tastes exactly like the real thing.

These are all great recipes to make for a crowd. I don’t know a soul that doesn’t go crazy over that sweet pork recipe. Make it when you have company in town or when your kid’s friends show up unexpectedly for dinner! That sweet pork recipe is delicious on tacos, burritos, and even the classic Cafe Rio salad. Any way you do it, you’ve got one amazing dinner ahead of you.

Reduce heat to low; cover and cook until rice is tender and broth absorbed, about 15 minutes.

Turn off heat and let rice sit, covered for 5 minutes.

Transfer rice to serving platter or bowl. Let rice sit for about 5 more minutes to cool slightly.

Pour dressing over rice, tossing gently together.

Season with salt and pepper.

Can be prepared ahead.

Let stand at room temperature.

for dressing:

Combine all dressing ingredients in blender or food processor, blend until smooth.

Season with salt and pepper.

Can be made one day ahead. Chill.

Use about 1/2 of this amount for the rice suggested above.

Recipe Notes

The dressing for the rice will be enough for double the amount of rice in this recipe. You may either half the dressing amount or the dressing is good for dressing salads, or as a marinade for fish or chicken. You may add about 1/3 cup of mayo and a little milk if you like a creamy salad dressing.

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Comments

How many people would you say this fed for your school luncheon? I need to scale the recipe to about 400 for cafe rio-style salads, insane as that sounds, and can't seem to figure out how much rice I'll need. Everyone's recipes seem to feed about six people. 🙂

Hello! I am wanting to make this rice a day in advance. When you say, “let stand at room temperature”, do you mean don’t put it in the fridge is I make it ahead of time? I’m making it for a lunch tomorrow. What do you suggest for reheating, etc? Thanks! -Whitney

Whitney, Sorry I missed this comment! Yes, just leave the rice out at room temperature. If it is refrigerated, it will change the gesture of the dish. I would leave the rice at room temp and add the mixed in ingredients the next day for make ahead!